This invention is in the field of devices for cleaning fibrous floor coverings, such as carpets and the like; more particularly, it is concerned with a means in such a device for disseminating a liquid cleaning solution.
Today, cleaning of a carpet in place is a common necessity because of the overwhelming preponderance of wall-to-wall carpeting in homes and commercial buildings. A prior art device to accomplish this in place cleaning commonly includes an apparatus which sprays or otherwise discharges liquid onto the carpet to be cleaned, thoroughly brushes the liquid in and about the carpet fibers and recovers the dirt laden solution by a suitable vacuum or suction means immediately adjacent the carpet to pick up the spent liquid and transfer the same to a waste tank.
The prior art device heretofore known, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,883,301, issued May 13, 1975 to Emrick et al, has utilized a plurality of spray nozzles arranged in a manner calculated to assure a wide and even coverage of the area treated by the cleaning device. However, in spite of careful design, the coverage provided by multiple nozzles is not even, there being a heavier concentration of the liquid in any area of spray overlap. Also, with multiple nozzles, the flow-rate for each nozzle is smaller, increasing the potential for clogging of the fine bores required for the lower flow-rates. Still further, if the pump performance varies due to voltage variation or other causes, the spray angle on these nozzles may also be adversely affected and, consequently, the performance of the device is affected.
What is required is a device which does not have the above noted problems, and which is economical.